Eternal Worlds
by aoi mizu no tenshi
Summary: UPDATED: KB pairing: Reikai has a secret, and it concerns a certain diety of death. Now that things have gone awry at Makai, the reikai tantei has been called to diffuse the situation... can they, or is it too late? -in hiatus-
1. prologue

Yuyu Hakusho Fanfiction

Disclaimer: YYH not mine, me borrow, me no have okane… waah… so no sue… ehehehehe!

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Eternal Worlds

Prologue

"Doesn't she have the right to know, your highness?"

Topaz orbs looked up to the ferry girl standing before him. He sighed as he reshuffled the papers before him.

"We don't have any choice. It is Enma-dioh's decision to keep things quiet. Even I didn't have any idea of this until now." He said through gritted teeth.

Ayame looked down and sighed as well, "So, my lord, what happens now?"

Koenma looked at her and down at the papers in his hand. "No one must know. All will be revealed in time. I will personally discuss this with the tantei. Remember what I have said, Ayame. Not a soul should know about this."

The ferry girl nodded obediently, "As I live, I will not tell a soul until all is revealed." At this, she bowed down to the prince of Reikai and took her leave.

As the huge doors closed behind her, Koenma rearranged the file in his table. Opening it, he read its contents and a crease appeared above his brow. It was a file that had been kept secret for hundreds of years. He gritted his teeth, even him, the future ruler of Reikai had no idea of this until now. His father had kept it deliberately kept it hidden in the dark… even to him. Now that things have gone awry at Makai, a once dormant demon now ruthlessly searched all of Makai for a lost treasure… it was only time that he would come here at Reikai to reclaim a treasure that had been his once… just as he did years ago. Koenma clenched his fists to his side as he stood, in his teenage form, he looked formidable, yet he was in turmoil deep inside. How the heck can they prevent another disaster from happening. That youkai had managed to enter Reikai once, who was to say that he won't do it again. He stared at the purplish sky before him, they couldn't afford to lose this time. The stakes were too high… too high.

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Gasping as she bolted up from her bed, Botan frantically looked down on her hands and sighed. No claws had grown from her finger tips, running a tongue over her teeth, no fangs, a hand over her head, she sighed. No ears.

Dropping back down on her bed, she tilted her head to look at the dark clouds that had surrounded the kingdom of Reikai. It had been almost a year that she had been having these strange dreams… dreams of her being turned into a full youkai. She had been around for centuries yet not once had she thought or even dreamed of her being a full youkai… not once, until now.

"What is happening to me?" she whispered worriedly. Abruptly sitting up, she grinned from ear to ear. Jumping up from her bed, she immediately changed from her nightdress to her usual pink kimono. If there was anyone who can give her answers, it was a certain good looking kitsune currently living at Ningenkai.

Summoning her oar, she immediately flew her way to Ningenkai. **I just hope that wouldn't be too bothered if I showed in his school as his classmate…** she thought as she jumped off the roof of Kurama's university.

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AN: Whoeee! My first time to do a YYH fanfic! Hope you guys like this! Revies please!

Aoi-chan


	2. The deity

Eternal Worlds

Chapter 1: The Deity

Kurama winced deep within his head. **Here we go again…** he thought somberly before a hoard of girls went gushing over him. Like the gentleman her truly was, Kurama smiled sweetly at the girls before him before his sharp senses caught hold of certain deity's spiritual aura. Looking ahead, he saw Botan standing below the shade of a tree looking at him, she was biting her lower lip to prevent from laughing out loud but her eyes shone with fervent amusement. He stood there for a while looking at her, enraptured by her subtle beauty, before he shook himself mentally. Excusing himself from the ladies, he gracefully made his way to the deity lounging under the tree. His emerald eyes widened in surprise as he saw the uniform she was currently donned… their university uniform.

"Ohayou Botan-san. Daijobou?" he asked her as he stopped before her.

She giggled and stood on tip-toe to look at the girls glaring dangerously at her in jealousy. "They look like they're ready to kill me." She told him while giggling uncontrollably.

The red-haired kitsune laughed with her. "Is there something wrong Botan? A new mission perhaps?" he asked her quietly.

The deity's pinkish violet eyes widened before she lowered them. She fiddled with the hem of her uniform. "I…er… um… no there's no problem that I know Kurama-kun… I just ummm…"

"What's wrong Botan?" he asked her worriedly. This was not like their deity at all.

Lifting her head, Botan looked directly in his emerald gaze. "I need your help Kurama… I know that you're the only one who can help me…" she whispered.

Kurama looked around him and nodded. Grasping her upper arm, he led her to a relatively secluded area where no one could hear their conversation. Lowering his things to the ground, Kurama held out a hand to assist the blue haired deity to sit by him. As Botan sat comfortably beside him, she looked ahead at the track and field runners practicing their laps.

"Botan?"

Botan smiled sadly and turned to the kitsune seated beside her. "I'm sorry to have bothered you Kurama, demo, you're the only one I could trust with this secret… and you're the only one I know who could probably give me an answer."

The kitsune looked worriedly at his friend. "What's wrong Botan? What happened?"

"I've been having these dreams for almost a year now. Its always the same and it's scaring me… every time… every time in my dreams, I turn into a full blooded youkai. Sometimes, I see myself being killed by a youkai… I can feel his claws ripping into my body…" she shivered violently. Tears falling down her pretty face, she tried to smile brightly at Kurama. "These doesn't mean anything… ne Kurama-kun…ne?"

The kitsune could only look at her worriedly. "Does Koenma know about these dreams of yours Botan?" he asked her gently.

She shook her head vigorously. "Iie… iie… I dare not tell him. He already has a lot on his mind to add my troubles to his problems…"

Kurama looked at the field and thought quietly. "Botan… I can't tell you anything for now… I have no idea what's triggering those dreams of yours, maybe you need sometime off your duties. They may be the reason for your nightmares."

The deity looked at him incredulously. "I've been doing this for centuries now, how come this is only happening now?"

He bit his lower lip. She was right, she was doing her duties for centuries now, but she only had these dreams recently. "But don't you think that you should take a break from your duties until you can figure out what those dreams mean? If its affecting your sleep and your work, then I guess its time for you to take a break. Even just a short one."

Botan sighed. "I wish I really could do that Kurama-kun, but who will do my duties when I'm gone. That would be really selfish of me."

The kitsune stared at her dumbstruck. She would rather let herself suffer that let others suffer? "That's… that's really thoughtful of you Botan…"

The deity merely beamed at him brightly before she jumped up. "Ooops! Gotta go! Duty calls! Thanks for listening Kurama-kun…"

Kurama stood up as well and nodded. "Botan…" as the deity turned to him he smiled gently at her, "If you ever need someone to talk to, remember that I'm always here to listen."

She really beamed this time. "Thanks Kurama-kun… you don't know how much that means to me." She told him before she mounted her oar and soared up to the heavens.

He stood there looking up at the sky even when he couldn't see her anymore. A frown marred his beautiful features. Something was wrong… something was definitely wrong and it involves Reikai's deity of death.

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"Che, what's this meeting all about now?"

Yusuke grumbled as he stretched his arms above his head. Kuwabara sat on the floor beside him cracking his knuckles. Hiei arrived earlier and now sat silently on the branch of a tree. Kurama was the one to arrive last, they were all in Genkai's temple where Koenma himself called a meeting.

As the Reikai prince arrived, the rest of the tantei had positioned themselves around to listen to what the meeting was all about and why it had to be done so secretively.

"Oi, Koenma, you usually send Botan to tell us about any meetings, what happened?" Yusuke asked him as Koenma sat before them.

"Yeah… what's up anyway?" Kuwabara chipped in

Koenma sat quietly before lowering a folder before him. "You have a new mission tantei…"

Yusuke let out a whoop. "Alright! Finally! We get to kick some ass here!"

Koenma shook his head. "Not this time Yusuke. This mission is in need of secrecy and stealth."

Yusuke stood quietly before he sat down before the prince. "This mission really serious Koenma?" he asked

Koenma nodded gravely. "Very serious. I'll tell you everything but none of you must tell a soul about this, is that clear?"

Four heads nodded quietly. Koenma sighed and removed the documents from within the folder. Kurama's eyes widened when he realized that hey were all looking at Botan's files. Kurama held one picture, "Koenma… this is…"

"This is Botan's files. These files have been kept secret for centuries. I only found out about these files about a week ago. These files contain who and what she was before she came into Reikai's gates."

Hiei and Kurama's eyes widened at the file before them. "She's a youkai!" came the fire demons surprised voice. Yusuke and Kuwabara scrambled up to look at the file in Hiei and Kurama's hands then back at Koenma for confirmation.

Koenma sighed. "From what Enma-dioh told me, Botan was sent to Reikai after a youkai killed her. Her spirit a bit dazed, Enma-dioh pushed all her memories in the deeper part of her brain, having not being able to erase it completely."

"So, what does this mission have to do with her?" Kuwabara asked him

"Everything." Came the answer

Kurama's sharp eyes rested on the Reikai prince. "There has to be more to it… doesn't it?"

"There's a youkai currently tearing Makai looking for her. It won't be long before he goes to Reikai and hunts her down."

"Why on earth would a youkai tear all of Makai looking for her!" Yusuke asked exasperatingly

"Unless…" Hiei looked at Koenma, "that demon has something to do with Botan? Doesn't he?"

"That youkai stole something from Reikai a thousand years ago…" Koenam told them

"What did he steal?" came the kitsune's question

"The former deity of death…Shizume."

Four jaws slacked open. "Who the heck is this Shizume?" Kuwabara chocked out

"She is Botan's mother, and the very person you are about to retrieve in Makai." came the quiet answer

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AN: whooeee! Two chappies in oro, 3 hours? Oh well, hope you enjoy this! Ja ne! again revies!

Aoi-chan


	3. revelations

Eternal Worlds

Chapter 2: Revelations

"She's what!" came the chorus from the tantei's

"She's Botan's mother." Came the placid response.

Kurama was first one to recover. He looked a bit startled and asked Koenma, "Mind explaining to us in full detail?"

Koenma sighed. "A thousand years ago, Shizume went to Makai for a special assignment with a few other tantei's… upon entering Makai, her reikai blood had managed to capture the attention of the demons all around them, a certain demon included. The former tantei did finish their mission, at a price, they had to leave Shizume behind so that they can return to Reikai and return the earth crystal to its rightful position. They came back a few days later to retrieve Shizume. Unfortunately, our deity had now fallen under that crafty wolf's spell."

Yusuke looked even more perplexed. "what the heck did that wolf want with your deity?"

Koenma shrugged. "I really don't know… but from what I've gathered, he had wanted Shizume and took her for himself, in a short span with her with him, he had managed to make her fall in love with him."

Kurama exchanged worried looks with Hiei and Yusuke before he turned back to the spirit prince. "So, your tantei's managed to retrieve the deity, what happened next?"

"They did, but Kurusake wasn't to happy about it."

Kurama's eyes sharpened at the name. "Did you just say Kurusake?"

All eyes turned towards the kitsune. "I did. Why?"

Kurama shook his head ruefully. "If we're talking about the same Kurusake that I know, then this mission is not going to be a walk in the park."

"Why do you say that?" Kuwabara asked him

"Because the Kurusake I know is not about to relinquish something that he really wants. He's very possessive."

Koenma looked at him and nodded. "Kurama's right. Kurusake wasn't too happy about it. He had managed to sneak into Reikai, stole Shizume back and killed a few of our guards as a tell tale sign of his presence… after that incident, we have never managed to get our hands on him or Shizume…"

"And the only proof that you have of their continued existence is Botan herself…." Kurama finished for him. "The question that's been bugging me now is, how did you know that she's the daughter Kurusake and Shizume?"

Koenma shook his head. "I only knew when I read this file, but when I asked my father about this, he said that he knew of Botan because he had immediately sensed her dormant reikai blood. Since there was only one person who could have passed down that type of genes, as I've already told you earlier, my father pushed her youkai blood deeper within her and let her reikai blood rise and trained her to be a ferry girl for Reikai."

The tantei stood quietly and contemplated about their new mission. Yusuke spoke first.

"If Kurusake is so possessive, then why the heck should we go and take his wife from him? I'm sure that Shizume would be able to escape if she wanted to, but she chose to stay… that means she wanted to be with him… why should we go through all of this trouble just to retrieve someone who doesn't even want to return?"

"We need Shizume back because of Kurusake. She needs to resume her duties as Deity of death and make Botan the official spiritual guardian here in Reikai." Came the response from the spiritual prince.

"That's one hell of a response but what the hell…" Yusuke told him as he stood up and straightened his uniform. "A mission is a mission. Lets go guys." He told the others before entering the portal towards Makai.

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Amber eyes observed the discussion before him. A dark smirk made its way to his enigmatic face, he was indeed on the right path. Eyes zeroing on the Reikai prince he imprinted the prince's face in his memory, as well as the rest of the new reikai tantei. An eyebrow raising a bit in curiosity as he looked at a certain fire demon and his former comrade in thievery. **Well, well, well… it looks like two of Makai's feared demons work for the spiritual world now… an ironic situation, but nonetheless makes things quite interesting.** He thought before her slipped silently into the night as the four tantei entered the demon world, making his way into the realm of the spirit world towards a certain blue haired deity.

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Botan sat up on her bed gasping yet again from another mysterious dream. Running a hand through her sweat drenched face, she closed her eyes and flopped beck down on her bed. **what the heck is wrong with me? These dreams are becoming more and more intense…scarier…**

I could show you the answers you want… 

Botan snapped back upright on her bed as the dark, mysterious voice echoed in her room. She frantically looked around the dark interior and tried to sense if there was other people in her room with her.

_I could show you what your dreams want to tell you._

She clutched her nightclothes closer to her body. "Who are you?" she whispered worriedly when she couldn't detect anyone around her.

_I am the very person who can give you the answers to your questions_.

"What do you mean questions?"

You want to know why you're having those dreams don't you? 

"What would you know about my dreams anyway?" she voiced out, although afraid, her curiosity now getting the better half of her.

Dreams of you as a youkai… of you being killed by another youkai… 

Botan slowly stood weakly from her bed and walked towards the middle of her room.

"Who are you?"

I can show you who you really are… 

"Who are you?" she asked yet again, when no one answered her she called out her question another time, she stood shocked on her position when a shadow moved from within the darkness of her room and moved towards her. She nearly screamed out loud when the light coming from outside her room revealed a handsome wolf demon with glittering silver eyes.

Botan collapsed on the middle of her room, looking up at him with wide eyes, she asked him with a trembling voice. "Who are you?"

The wolf demon smirked at her.

"Your father."

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AN: Whahehehe, sorry if it took me this long to update. I've been busy with my other story and with classes that I don't even have the time for myself. Wah! Anyweis, hope you guys like this chapter! Ja ne! thanks to those who reviewed and hope to hear more reviews!

Aoi-chan


	4. deities and demons

Chapter 3: Deities and demons

"Damn, we've been here for almost four days now, but we still haven't found that damned wolf's lair!"

Kurama sighed and looked at the black haired teen. "Kurusake has been known far and wide for his power but also for his possessiveness, that's why he made it sure that it would be impossible for any normal youkai, ningen or reiki to find his lair."

Yusuke rolled his eyes. "Then how the hell does Koenma expect us to find him?!"

Hiei snorted. "Baka. We're not after the wolf demon himself, we're after his wife."

Yusuke glared at the fire demon, "You find him, you find his lair, you find his WIFE!"

The red haired kitsune merely sighed at his friends and watched the clear Makai skies_, Now, I guess that fills in the puzzle of Botan's dreams. She's starting to remember her past… it must have been triggered by being surrounded by demons all the time. If she's having her dreams, then that means one way or another, she was bound to remember everything… she's probably going to go straight here in Makai to find the answers to her past… _his brows furrowed worriedly at that last thought.

"I see that Reikai sent some more of their people to look for me…"

Emerald orbs widening in surprise, jumping up, he turned around along with the rest of tantei to face a beautiful raven haired woman with bright amethyst eyes. Behind her stood three demons, keeping guard over her.

"Tell Enma-dioh that I no longer want to go back and that I am perfectly happy here in Makai…" she told them a bit vehemently

"Lady Shizume, I presume?" Kurama asked her

Amethyst orbs looked at him and nodded, "We have been sent here to bring you back to Reikai to assume your position as deity of Death."

Shizume merely snorted and shook her long raven black hair. "They have a lot of ferry girl to appoint to that position. Leave now tantei, my husband will not be pleased if he finds you near his grounds, he dislikes anything that is connected to Reikai." As she told them that she turned her back to them and prepared to leave.

"We are also here to bring you back to your daughter once again."

At the kitsune's words, the woman stiffened and slowly turned to face the red-haired teen. "What do you mean by that?" she whispered softly.

Yusuke's eyes glittered, "You daughter is currently Reikai's resident deity of Death." He answered her.

Shizume lifted a hand to her face and laughed ruefully, "You might be mistaken dear tantei, my daughter…"

"Was a demon, who died a long time ago and now is currently in the services of Reikai." Hiei told her.

She frowned and gripped the fan that she was holding tighter. "I do not believe you! Leave now before I order our guards to take care of you!" she said angrily said before turning back to leave them.

Kuwabara merely squawked and opened his mouth to speak only to be beaten first by Kurama. "She has your eyes."

This time, everyone could feel the shock from the woman's body and as she turned to look at them, her eyes wide and luminous. She gave a strangled gasp as she looked at the kitsune who continued. "She doesn't have you hair though… I don't think she inherited it from Kurusake as well, her hair doesn't match any of yours… yours is as dark as the night while Kurusake's is as dark as the bark of a willow tree… and she has the coloring of the bluest skies on a clear day and the scent of peony that goes well with her name."

Shizume gasped this time, her eyes filling with tears. "You have seen her?"

Kurama nodded. "She is appointed Deity of death to reikai and the assistant to us tantei."

Shizume hardened herself, "How do I know that you're not lying…?"

Silence met her words before she gritted her teeth, "Bring me proof that you do know her and that she is under Reikai's protection and I will consider going with you." She told them before hurrying back inside the forest that stood behind them followed by the two demon guards.

"Nice going, Kurama. All that we have to do now is bring a proof that Botan is staying at Reikai and we'll have her mother back at Reikai in no time flat!" Kuwabara told him grinning.

"That is if Kurusake doesn't find out about this first."

Yusuke swore. "Damn. We've gotta hurry or that wolf might come back and get a heads up on what we're doing. I think Keiko has a picture of the group when we went swimming last summer… let's just use that and be done with this." At his words the four tantei hurried back to the portal that would lead them to ningenkai, unbeknownst to them, the same ferry girl that was in question was already on her way to Makai… with a specific demon by her side.

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Botan sat down on the soft bedding and looked at the calm Makai skies, her hands twiddling with the laces of her robes. _I'm a youkai, born a youkai… all this time I've worked with reikai and they've never bothered to tell me… Koenma-sama…_ gritting her teeth, Botan faced the mirror and glared at her reflection there. _How could you?! You knew all along and you never told me?!_ Eyes flashing with fury, she stood up and stomped across the vast chamber. As soon as she got here in Makai, she had met a beautiful woman with an unmistakable amount of spiritual energy in her. Completely shaken after knowing her past, the young ferry girl glared once again at the mirror. Her mother was and still is a ferry girl from Reikai and her father was a full blooded demon… one heck of a combination but she was the result of their union, and after her sudden death, Reikai took her in but completely erased all semblance of her past appearance or her youkai memories.

_I've loyally served them for centuries and they have never breathed a word to me! What do they think?! That I'll never find out?!_ Growling deep in her throat, Botan threw the cup that had found its way to her hands to the nearest wall, shattering it to pieces. _How could they keep my own past from me?!! I have the right to know!!_

"If you're planning to vent out your anger, you could try throwing those vessels at you prince's head."

Swiftly turning around, Botan flushed brick red when she saw her mother standing behind her with a rueful grin. "Anou…" embarrassed to be caught venting her anger.

Shizume chuckled. "You always did have a temper."

Glaring at the broken glass on the floor, she gritted her teeth, "How could they not tell me?" she whispered harshly

"I think they we're only trying to do what they think was best for you." Came the soft response

"But it's still not fair!" flopping down on the floor, she sighed and looked sadly on her hands.

Shizume smiled and kneeled beside her daughter. "I has been along time, Botan-chan demo, knowing how Enma-dioh works, he was probably trying to protect both the spirit realm and you. I have all my life worked for them and they have always watched over me… except for this time… this was my decision. I wanted to be with your father."

Looking up her mother, "Did you ever know that I was in Reikai?'

The raven haired woman smiled sadly and shook her head. "Iie… not until now."

Botan blinked. "What did you mean not until now?"

Looking at the closed doors behind her, Shizume held her daughter's hand tightly with her own. "You father has not known of this yet… but Reikai had sent some of their tantei just a while back to look for me… and they were the one's that told me that you were in fact at Reikai…" at her daughter's surprised look she continued. "I was giving it serious consideration to come back with them, if they would be able to give me adequate proof that you were indeed their assistant and that you were working with them."

Amethyst orbs widened and gripped her mother's hands tighter, "Do you… can you… can you describe to me what they looked like and when they came here?" she stammered

"They came here about the same day you arrived with your father. I think that Reikai sent them because they were alerted of Kurusake's movements and that he was currently starting to move to try and locate you between the three worlds…"

Gulping at her words… _Just recently…_ "Who…"

Shizume merely shook her head, "I do not know who for I did not ask them… but from the spiritual energy of the other two, I realized that they belonged to Reikai and had a hunch that they were sent to look for me." Pausing to gather her thoughts, she thought back to what had transpired the other day between her and the reikai tantei. "There were four of them, one of them was a ningen, but he did have a significant amount of reiki in him, tall, a bit bulky… the other three were lean in form…the other I would surmise as half demon and half ningen, dark of hair and his spiritual energy was exceptional."

Botan's lips trembled at her mother's description of the first two tantei, _Kami-sama_… _that sounds exactly like Yusuke and Kuwabara…_ she gasped silently at her mother's next words, "The other two I do believe are demons. The small one I remember clearly as the koorime, Hiei and the other demon I do know recognize but her was quite striking in appearance… he was the one that described you to me, hair as red as a rose, his face held almost a feminine appeal and his eyes were as green as emeralds. I sensed that he was a ningen but his spirit spoke of nothing of being one but a youkai through and through."

_Kurama_… _he knew…_ lowering her head, she bit her lip to prevent the onslaught of tears that threatened to overflow. _And here I thought that they had no idea what's happening…_

"Do you know them Botan?"

Merely nodding her head, the former deity of death looked at her daughter whose hands were now clenched into a whiter knuckled fist. "Botan?"

Lifting her head, her eyes eerily cold with fury. "I know them. But I swear… they'll regret not telling me the truth…" she said vehemently.

_Especially, Kurama… I'll make you pay kitsune… for lying to me… especially when I've given you my trust… and my heart._

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AN:

Hello minna!! It's been quite a while!! I've really been into Kurama and Botan these past few months that I've finally got the time and the inspiration to continue with working on this story! To those who reviewed the first time, thank you very much and I hope to hear from you again and very much hope that you'll like this chapter!

Aoi-chan


	5. the fox and the wolf maiden

Chapter 4: The fox and the wolf maiden

"What do you mean she's not in her room?!"

Hinageshi winced at the toddler's high pitched scream. "Anou… when I came to her room, everything was left in place… and she wasn't there… maybe she went to spend some time in Ningenkai?" she added the last uncertainly

Topaz orbs blazed furiously at the red head before him before sighing. "Maybe…" knowing his ferry girl, she probably went to Ningenkai to spend some time with Keiko and Shizuru… maybe even with Yukina… _demo… why can't I help feeling that something's bad is going to happen?_ Leaving his morbid thoughts behind, Koenma, in his toddler form looked at the stack of papers on his desk and rubbed his temples. _This is going to be a very long day…_ looking up, he looked at the young ferry girl and dismissed her.

_What if she's not in Ningenkai?_

At that thought, Koenma started, "Hinageshi."

"Yes, Koenma-sama?"

He frowned and looked at the purplish skies of Reikai, maybe he was just being a worry wart… demo it wouldn't hurt to make sure, "Hinageshi, go to Ningenkai and make sure that Botan is there. If you find her, tell her to report directly to me, immediately."

As Hinageshi left, he mentally assured himself that their resident Deity of Death is merely spending some time with her friends at the human realm… nothing really to worry about.

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Kurama watched as the people passed by the window. It was already late afternoon and Yusuke had called Keiko and asked her to bring their picture which was taken last summer when they all went swimming and asked her to meet them at this little café. His mind went back to the incident earlier when they had met a certain ferry girl's mother. Shizume had looked nothing like her daughter… the hair, the face… everything… well… everything except their eyes. Looking deep in Shizume's eyes, he was very much reminded of a bubbly ferry girl from Reikai.

"I wonder if Botan-kun knows all about this…"

Looking from the window to his fellow detective and friend, he sighed and remembered Botan's question to him a couple of days ago, _how come?_, he sighed. "Iie, Kuwabara-kun. I don't think Botan-kun has any idea about her past… and I don't think she'll be thrilled to know that she was hidden from her own parents."

Yusuke looked at him closely. "And you know this?"

The red head sighed. "Because she's already having some dreams about her past and it's scaring her…" at the looks that was thrown his way he sighed again, "she came to me two days ago asking about the dreams that she was continuously having for the past few months… after meeting her mother, I think her memories are now resurfacing…"

The demon incarnate grinned. "Hey! Then that's good! If we tell her the truth, maybe she'll agree to help us!! I'm sure she would want to know about her past anyway!"

Hiei snorted and glared balefully at Yusuke. "And what? Lead her directly to Kurusake? You heard Koenma, he's currently tearing Makai apart looking for her spirit."

Kurama nodded at Hiei's words. Looking behind Yusuke, he noticed Keiko coming inside the café with someone trailing after her, when Yusuke's girlfriend stopped beside their table, he recognized the little girl to be another ferry girl. "Keiko-kun, Hinageshi-kun…"

Sliding on the seat beside Yusuke, Keiko smiled at her friends and placed the picture on the table. "Sorry it took me this long. I had to find that picture from all my things."

The fox incarnate looked at the picture on the table and back to the ferry girl now seating beside Kuwabara, a trickle of unease crept up his spine as hec watched her worried face. "Hinageshi-kun, did Koenma send you over with a message for us?"

At the shake of her head, Keiko looked at the four detectives. "Ne, Yusuke, what's going on by the way? First you ask me for this picture, now Hinageshi's looking for Botan-chan. We've already called Shizuru and she told us that Botan's not there… only her and Yukina."

Hinageshi lifted her eyes to the tantei, "Anou… Koenma-sama wants Botan-san back at reikai immediately… and since she is assistant to the tantei… I assumed that…"

Yusuke frowned. "She's not here, and…" he stole a glance at his fellow detectives, "I don't think she has any idea about our new mission right now."

"Where in three worlds could she be?" Hinageshi whispered worriedly

Kurama glanced at the picture on the table and felt his world shift a bit as he eyed the image of their bubbly ferry girl in the picture.

_Botan_…

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Yusuke swore out loud as they tried to keep up with the silver apparition ahead of them, he, Kuwabara and Hiei were currently sitting on Puu's back as they tried to keep up with the legendary thief. "Do you think that she's with that wolf demon already?"

Hiei merely kept quiet but his eyes hardened as he watched his friend move quickly from tree to tree in search of the ferry girl. From all of the tantei, he was the only one who knew of the kitsune's affection to the ditzy girl… the moment that they had realized that Botan was nowhere to be seen, both in Ningenkai and in Makai, the kitsune transformed immediately into his demon form and stormed back into Makai to locate the young woman in question, surprising the other two detectives.

Pausing to gather his senses, Kurama stood on top of the highest tree in Makai, his amber orbs glittering with fury. _If anything happened to her…_ closing his eyes, he concentrated on finding her ki, when that didn't work, he used his other senses to try and see if he could locate her that way. Hiei a while ago had already tried finding her using his jagan, unfortunately it failed at doing it's task when he could not find the ferry girl or her mother. Eyes snapping open when his nose caught the faint scent of peony in the air. Eyes glittering and his ears twitching, he sniffed the air again and moved so swiftly that the other three detectives were surprised at his sudden movement.

Urging Puu faster, he leaned over to shout at his friend. "Oi! Kurama! Did you find anything?"

"I'm not sure… but I think I caught the scent of peony in the air…"

Kuwabara frowned. "Peony? What's that got to do with Botan?"

Hiei sighed and rolled his eyes. "Baka ningen. There's no peony here in Makai…"

The taller teen bristled at his words but then stopped when his last sentence hit him. "No peony… then that means…"

"Kurama caught the scent of that ferry girl."

Hiei's eyes widened when he sensed the faint barrier that stood in their way, "Stop the bird! Kurama, watch out!!!" as his words left his mouth, they were thrown forcefully backward when they crashed onto the barrier.

Groaning, the fox demon shook his head and looked at his surroundings, checking if his friends were right behind him, eyes widening in surprise, he stood up fluidly and watched as his friends started bickering with each other. He watched as Hiei looked over to his position then looked over to the other two detectives and talked to them. After a few minutes, the three rode back behind Puu and left.

_They didn't see me_. He thought as he watched as Puu disappeared from his sight. Looking up, he then realized that when they crashed headlong to the barrier, Puu's massive size created a ripple that when the rest of them were thrown backwards, he on the other hand, was thrown forward and into the protected area of the barrier. Looking at the clearing and the forest ahead of him, he thought about the way Hiei acted and when they had left without looking for him… stopping abruptly, he stared back at the area where he thought the barrier was and realized that it also acted as an illusion to protect this area.

_But what is it protecting?_ Moving cautiously forward, the then noticed that the scent of peony was stronger in this area. Clenching his clawed hands into fists, he stepped into the forest only to be stopped with a low, husky chuckle from his side. Quickly materializing his rose whip, his eyes widened when he saw the very object of their search standing not more than five feet away from him. Arms crossed below her breast, she leaned casually on the tree with her legs crossed, her unusual azure hair was left down and gently moved with the wind, but what surprised him was the amount of youkai ki that she was emitting and the ears perched on top of her head and the softly swinging tail curled up on her waist. When she opened her eyes, it gleamed dangerously of amethyst and silver.

She pursed her lips and grinned dangerously at the kitsune apparition before her, "Well, well, well… if it isn't our legendary kitsune… what are you doing here? There is nothing for you to steal here."

Letting the whip disappear from his grasp, he watched her closely. "I'm not here to steal anything, Botan-kun"

Her eyes flashed dangerously. "If not to steal then what?"

"We were looking for you."

She laughed softly, "Looking for me?" she looked at him, amusement twinkling in her bright amethyst orbs, "Why in three worlds would you be looking for me, Youko Kurama? I'm perfectly situated where I should be. I'm home…"

He stepped forward to the ferry girl. "I'm here to bring you back to Reikai."

Amusement faded from her eyes to be replaced by fury. "Yes. That's what Koenma-sama ordered you, did he not? Did he order you to steal my mother, too?"

Irritation flickered in his gaze. "I'm not here to steal anything, I'm going to take you back home, Botan-kun…"

She chuckled dangerously and shook her head. "I'm afraid you've got it all wrong, Kurama-kun… it would be classified as stealing if you're going to take something away from where it should be… and I assure you… I am perfectly aware of _where_ I am and _who_ I am, now." Giving him a ladylike snort, she turned to face him fully and waved her hand, in a few moments, he was surrounded by five demon guards with their weapons aimed at him. When one of the demons came and roughly held his arms, Botan came forward and looked up to his confused amber orbs. "You on the other hand…" she whispered softly, "Are trespassing on my father's land… and so…" whipping around, looked at the other demons surrounding them and barked her orders. "Take this kitsune in and bring him to father," smirking dangerously at him, "let's see what he's going to do to thieves and trespassers like him." At her words he was roughly pushed forward by the youkai holding his arm.

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AN:

Hi minna! This is the 2nd update that I've done in quite a while… when I have extra time, I'm going to finish my card captor story… and see if I 'm upto making a sequel to Eternally Bound. Hehehe… that is if I get to finish this story as well as my other pending stories… or which ever comes first. Hope you like this story minna! Revies please!!

Aoi-chan


	6. tears of deity

Chapter 5: Tears of a deity

Kurusake watched his former comrade and smirked. It had been two hours ago that his daughter had turned the youko in and he still can't help to control the laughter that threatened to explode. Now that his daughter left the two of them alone in the vast chamber, he knew that the kitsune watched him warily and closely.

The silver haired kitsune watched as Kurusake sat in front of him, still struggling from the shock and surprise at Botan's actions a while ago, he stared at the wolf demon before him and rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Something amuses you?"

The wolf demon then howled in laughter ticking the kitsune even further, when his laughter subsided, he watched the demon before him with silver eyes still twinkling with barely concealed amusement. "Kurama Youko… the infamous Kurama Youko," he shook his head then. "I'm surprised to find you working for Reikai my old friend… if I'm not mistaken, Kuronue would be laughing his head off if he knew about this."

A pained expression flitted through the kitsune's face before it disappeared. "If you haven't heard… Kuronue's dead."

The wolf merely sighed and nodded. "Yes. I have heard of that. Sit down, Kurama… unlike what my daughter thinks, I'm not about to tear you from limb to limb after you've trespassed my territory… you did after all help me build what I have now."

The kitsune merely shrugged and went before the wolf demon and sat in front of a low table across from him. Kurusake took a cup and drank from it. "Knowing you, Kurama, I'm sure that being a tantei was not of your choosing… am I right?"

The silver haired youkai merely chose not to respond to that question, "I didn't know that you took in a ferry girl as your mate."

Kurusake merely nodded and smiled. "I believe you've already seen, Shizume?" at his nod he continued, "There are a lot of things here that we've wanted, but when I first laid my eyes on that woman, I knew that I just had to have her… may Reikai damn me for it, I do not care. She is one in a million… as is my daughter that has been lost to us."

Kurama looked at him, "It has been, what? Centuries, since Botan died… why look for her only now?"

"That is because Shizume and I had resigned ourselves to the fact that she is indeed dead and that we would never see her again… until I happened to see her during one of my raids. I could not believe it at first, but I tracked her down and knew that it was really her. But before I could get my hands on her, she flew away and it was then that I knew that she was currently in Reikai… How about you, Kurama? Were you really planning to steal them both back for Reikai?"

Amber orbs looked at him and nodded. "It was what was ordered to us by Koenma… we were only following his orders… after all, we do work for him."

The silver eyes wolf looked at his friend. "I understand… since you are my friend Kurama, and we have gone a long way at that… I would not hold you in a dungeon nor have you killed. I will not treat you as a prisoner but as a guest here in my home… but you will never be allowed to step out of the barrier… once you do, you pronounce yourself as my enemy. I cannot have you racing back to Reikai about my place here as well as the location of my daughter and my wife" he added the last seriously.

Kurama looked at his old comrade and nodded.

_That would also give me time to know why the hell Botan is so pissed off at me._

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Sighing as she watched her reflection on the clear waters before her, her mind wandering back to the events that had taken place for the past few weeks. When she had known everything about her past, she was filled with an irrational anger to Reikai and everyone who knew of her past… that included a specific handsome kitsune. When she had first seen Kurama inside her father's grounds, she could barely think clearly, all she wanted to do was rip him from limb to limb at his treachery. Using his recognition and his friendship, she was able to lure him and allow her demon guards to take him in. When she looked in his eyes, she knew that he was surprised and shocked at her actions. _It was as if he had no idea why I was so pissed off…_ a few hours after that, she had seen the kitsune yet again, wandering down the halls of their palace, when his eyes met hers, he made his way towards her, but before he could come near her, she glared at him hatefully and ran away from him. It was then that she had heard from her mother, that Kurama was a former colleague of her father and that was the reason why he was invited to stay in the palace as a guest, instead of a prisoner.

_Three weeks now… and I still can't find the strength to face him_… the anger and fury was gone now… but what replaced it was sorrow and depression. _I trusted him, I cared for him deeply… demo why didn't he tell me… why didn't… _tears blurred her vision and she let her tears fall as she lowered her face in her hands. _Baka! He doesn't even know of your feelings for him, for all that you know, he might think of you as just as his friend. _At that thought, she let all of her sadness out and cried under the pale light of the moon.

Watching as her daughter cried softly beside the fountain and sighed. Leaning on her husband's side she laid her head on his shoulder as they watched their daughter silently from the side. "I've already tried to talk to her, anata… demo, she's not really talking… she would just smile and the say that everything's alright… even when it's not…"

"It has been years, koi… she's a grown up now… much more than we would like to admit… there are just some things that we cannot fix…"

"But it doesn't mean that we don't have the right to know or at least try to help her!" she bit out vehemently.

Kurusake merely chuckled and held his wife closer to him. "Daijobou… she'll open up… just give her time…"

Unknown to them, another pair of eyes was drawn to their daughter now resting quietly beneath the pale moonlight. Kurama watched Botan from afar, trying to gauge why her hate for him was so strong. What had he done to earn such hatred from her? She who was so happy and carefree all the time, the one person that he had been drawn to because of the light that she would bring to them, he wracked his brain to the reason why she would look at him with such hatred. Keeping his distance from her, he merely kept watch. He satisfied himself from watching her, what would make her smile, what would make her laugh, the things that would make her sad, make her angry. The few weeks that he had stayed here had given him the perfect opportunity to know the ferry girl… but there were things that still eluded him… such as the reason why the smile that she would usually give doesn't reach her eyes anymore, why won't she talk to him, smile at him, why she would give in to tears in the middle of the night, especially when she thought that no one was looking. He looked down at his clawed hands and fisted them, aside from the confusion as to her reaction to him, what bothered him was that he wanted to see her smile again.

_I want her to smile at me again_.

Amber orbs glittering in determination, he strode forward towards the now slumbering ferry girl. Slowly stroking her hair with his clawed hand, he quietly reveled at its softness before stopping in surprise when he heard her soft voice call out his name… it's tone light and laced with sadness and longing. _Longing?_ Unable to keep the masculine smirk that made its way to his lips, the fox then gently lifted the girl into his arms and stealthily made his way towards her room. Stopping before her door, he already had his hand on the handle when he looked down at the girl in his arms. Deciding that he finally wanted to get some answers, he moved back from her door and made his way towards his own chamber.

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"I don't understand, he couldn't have disappeared into thin air!!"

Hiei sighed and looked at the carrot topped ningen that had gotten his beloved sister's heart, _What in three worlds did she in this baka?!,_ It had been three weeks already since they went out to Makai to search for the ferry and got separated with Kurama when they crashed into an unseen barrier.

Yusuke looked at Hiei, "Hiei, you told us that you sensed a barrier in front of us before we crashed into it, didn't you?" At the fire demon's nod, his dark eyes glittered, "You don't think that Kurama was able to enter that barrier?"

The koorime merely nodded. "It's possible that he was able to go past the barrier, and from what Mokuro told me, the area that we bumped into already marked the territory of Kurusake."

"Then we have to find a way to get into that barrier and get them out! I want Botan back!!!" Koenma yelled out loud. The prince of the spirit world had been throwing a fit ever since they realized that his best ferry girl was no where to be seen and was now possible that she was under Kurusake's realm. Hiei's crimson eyes glittered dangerously but he merely kept quiet. He wanted no part of this idiotic mission, to him, Reikai should have just left the ferry girl with her parents and not bother them. Kurusake was and after all a demon and he knew that most demons were very possessive… and knowing his friend, he knew Kurama was going to find a way to locate the ferry girl and take care of her in his own way. So, basically, there was really nothing important for them to do.

After leaving the gates of Reikai, they were now ensconced in Kuwabara's house, talking about the details of their mission with Keiko, Yukina and Shizuru. Yusuke swore darkly, "How the hell are we supposed to get in that barrier. It's even a miracle that Hiei here was able to detect it!"

"Maybe you could try shooting one of your reigun to the barrier, that might give you time to create a ripple and enter the barrier…" Shizuru volunteered.

"Yeah, and grab the attention of all youkai in those parts and even alert Kurusake that we're already on his doorstep?" Kuwabara grumbled.

Keiko and Yukina looked at each other worriedly and looked at Hiei in surprise when he spoke, but his words captured everyone's attention as well.

"I think that we should just let thing this slide. Obviously there's nothing that we'd be able to do here… this trouble started in the first place when Reikai altered the ferry girl's life when they kept her past from her, they should have known that one way or another, Kurusake would find out where they had kept their daughter… and as for that kitsune, he's been around much longer than we have and knows that wolf personally, if there's anyone who would be able to fix this mess, it would be that kitsune himself."

Yukina looked at the fire demon before them, "Demo… what about Botan-san? She's a ferry girl… her ki alone would cause a riot in the youkai communities…"

Hiei snorted and looked at his sister, "She is a ferry girl, but she is also part youkai. If she is with Kurusake, then there won't be any problems with that ferry girl. That wolf is going to find a way to revert her back into her youkai form."

At his words the rest kept quiet, digesting his words until Yusuke spoke, "Then, Kurama is on his own then."

The other two merely nodded in assent while the girls kept quiet, their eyes showing their worry and concern. "I hope that they'll be alright…" Keiko then whispered.

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AN:

Hello minna! Finally updated! Hehehe,, I'll try my best to upload the next chapter by next week. Hope you guys like this chapter and hope to hear more revies!!

Aoi-chan


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